Captured Again
by Chlstarr
Summary: Bowser's kidnapped Princess Peach again, but this time he's going all out by planning a wedding, and Peach is having none of it, especially when she finds out right away that the special Tiara he's given her is alive! So, being civilized they duke it out with cutting words and jabs at each other.
1. Captured Again

AN: I'm excited for this game, so this is written way before it came out and way before I've ever actually seen the real opening cutscene.

* * *

"Why haven't you given up on me, yet? Surely there are other princesses, aside from me _and_ my cousin Daisy, out there who you could torment more than me." Princess Peach asked her captor in frustration rubbing her temples as he hoisted her over his shoulder yet again, though he was careful enough that she wouldn't end up gouging an eye out from one of his shell spikes.

" _Give up_ on _you?_ " Bowser scoffed at the notion wondering where she had even gotten the idea and especially at her little suggestion. " _ **Never**_. You're the only one for me, Peachy. And no plumber is going to ever stop me from that either!"

"Ex-plumber." She corrected simply to annoy him, even if it was true.

" _Whatever!_ Besides the fact that you're the only one right next door to my kingdom, _soon to be our kingdom_ , the point is I have been and will always be loyal to you until my game is over, and again, that pesky plumber isn't getting in my way, ex-plumber or not!" Bowser shot back sounding surprisingly sincere for the key parts of it that caught her ear and left her confused.

"Bowser, what do you-?!" Peach started to ask but then noticed that they had reached his airship, but there was a huge difference about it, _it was painted white_. There was also purple banners everywhere with Piranha Plants arranged with little flowers to make it more decorative. She had finally added things together, since Bowser was also dressed rather formally in white and purple, he even had shoes for once which was impressive. Of all things, she knew he would try to do someday, she couldn't help but wonder why he was trying it _now_.

Bowser set her down as soon as his clown car reached the deck. Something happened as soon as she was on board the airship but Peach couldn't dwell on it because Bowser had her attention again.

"Now, Peachy, I have a little present for you…" Bowser began, snapping his fingers and instantly a fluffle of menacing looking bunnies also dressed formally and the smaller female of the fluffle had a very ornate tiara on a red velvet pillow. Bowser then gingerly lifted the tiara from the pillow and started moving towards her and a motion towards her own crown since he obviously wanted her to wear the tiara right then and there. She took a step back instinctively, but simultaneously also noticed that the tiara had eyes with pink irises, and she looked worried and scared.

"Bowser…What. Did. You. Do?" Peach annunciated slowly to get the point of her growing anger across.

"Now Peachy, I'm going all out for our wedding, so of course I went and got the most perfect wedding tiara that comes with her own veil! And that's just the start! These are the Broodals," he gestured to the bunnies and continued rather cheerfully. "And they're helping me plan the wedding and gather everything that we need for it!"

"And let me guess, not only did you kidnap another being but you're also stealing everything needed for a wedding that you and I both _know_ is not going to actually happen because Mario-!" Peach shrilled at him furiously, but he interrupted her with logic.

"Won't be able to legally stop a _Royal_ wedding." Bowser grinned like a Cheshire cat as he said it, and somehow was able to widen it as the look of horror on her face grew in realization.

Princess Peach Toadstool knew well enough that it was embarrassing to be known for constantly being kidnapped by the same kidnapper. It didn't help that said kidnapper's original motive was political, and somewhere along the way became personal for two different reasons. First and foremost was to defeat Mario once and for all, and second but sometimes equal to the first was marrying her, but usually that goal was reserved for the off chance that Mario would be defeated.

However, Peach could only guess someone finally tipped him off about Royal weddings being different than normal ones, in that they were for life, divorce wasn't even an option…usually… depending on the country, or in this case, Kingdom. Even Mario could do nothing about it because they were so legally binding, and that was the goal Bowser most likely jumped right onto, because then he'd be killing two birds with one stone. Just like he's always wanted.

"Don't deny it Peachy, neither of us are getting any younger and I'm sure your council has been pestering you lately to settle down. So why not shut them up and get it over with already with the one monarch close enough to finally bring our kingdoms together. That way, your people, _soon to be our people_ , will finally have the political security they need to be safe from anyone else foolish enough to try and conquer them." Bowser reminded her calmly, and unfortunately for Peach it was a very logical explanation.

Unfortunately for Bowser, her determination persisted.

"Forcing an alliance like this, is not going to make me marry you!" She spat, hating that he was using the good for her people against her. "Mario will find a way to stop you-! Stop it! Let her go!"

This time her interruption from Bowser came from an action that was admittedly her doing, as Bowser detested Mario's name despite wanting a fair enough rematch that has him come out on top instead of the ex-plumber. Bowser was crushing the tiara being in his claw at the mention of Mario's name, and at Peach's worry over the poor thing, he gave a small mercy by tossing the tiara towards the Princess, and just as he expected the tiara transformed into her true form as he had found her in the Cap Kingdom. She was a little ghost thing who's entire top half was the tiara she was as well as a wedding veil, and she hid right behind Princess Peach as soon as Bowser tossed her that way.

Peach was startled at first because the transformation was so sudden, and she wasn't expecting the tiara to be Boo-like. However, she had more important things to worry about such as the reminder that the creature now hiding behind her was also taken from her home, and Peach decided to stand her ground against Bowser about that.

"Honestly! And here I thought you weren't ever going to kidnap anyone else _and stay loyal to me!_ " Peach huffed that last part just to twist his words around and tease him and throw him off guard. Thankfully it worked, and while Bowser stuttered out his shocked response, Peach had her hands behind her back and signed to Tiara to run by doing a walking motion with two fingers and pointing in the general direction of the side of the airship.

"Wh-a, I didn't say I wasn't gonna kidnap anyone else-! I-I mean… Oh, for Grambi's sake, Peach she doesn't count, she's part hat! I nabbed her from the Cap Kingdom and then came and got you!" Bowser managed to retort vaguely hearing the tiara boo thing make a vocalable of 'Uh-uh'.

"There's no way I can leave you here with him, if we leave, we leave together!" Tiara whispered insistently to Peach.

"And that's another thing, Bowser! There's a chance another Chaos Heart will appear if we get married! I can't go through all that again!" Peach shot back at her captor, and quickly reached up and threw her crown at Bowser's head, aiming for his silly looking top hat, grabbed the tiara boo's nubby arm and ran for the side of the airship, she didn't care how high they were, Mario was bound to catch up and with luck could catch her out of the air, but even she knew she couldn't be that lucky in any lifetime.

It didn't help that as soon as she hit the edge of the airship she was bounced back by something blocking her, but the momentum was strong enough to push her to the ground.

"Sweet mother of Jaydes, you actually tried to jump off the ship! Don't tell me you'd rather your game be over than marry me? Duty over love, Peachy, remember?" Bowser told her in a rather boastful manner. His countenance softened a bit as he continued though. "You don't have to love me you know, but I honestly can't live without you, and this is the only way I can ensure that you'll stay in my life and _that blasted Mario won't be able to do anything about it!_ " Of course as he brought Mario up himself, he couldn't help but get angry again at the thought. "And don't even think about escaping, I enchanted the whole ship to prevent your essence from leaving, same goes for Tiara here….Yeah, that's her name too, but no surprise there right?"

"My lord! There's a persistent jumping man headed our way from behind us!" Called Spewart, the Broodal in blue.

"And there he is right on cue…" Bowser muttered to himself before turning back to Peach and found that she had already picked herself up, looking miserable as ever, a single glance from those sad eyes of hers were enough to nearly break his heart. So, gently he replied to her earlier statement before she tried to jump ship. "Listen, I don't know about the Chaos Heart, but if I know magic well enough, then it's kinda like how lightning doesn't strike the same place twice in the same storm. So I highly doubt it's gonna pop up again when you say 'I do' this time."

Princess Peach looked away sadly, Tiara floating in closer to her for moral support, and after noticing one of the Broodals picking up Peach's crown, she finally decided to play her part and become Peach's wedding tiara, but the veil wasn't necessary yet. Peach was idly surprised that her fellow captive was following along, but at the same time couldn't blame her since there was literally nothing either of them could do until Mario arrived.

Bowser could only hope that for once he managed to get through to her, but she was so headstrong and stubborn that he couldn't be sure. In any case, all he could do for now was worry about planning for the wedding, and as soon as Mario got here, he'd knock him off the ship for sure and let the Broodals stall for time.


	2. Wedding Dress Blues

AN: Spoilers for like, the middle of the game, but hey, the whole thing got spoiled basically.

* * *

If there was one thing Princess Peach couldn't deny as she gazed at her reflections in the trio of mirrors before her, it was that Bowser had surprisingly good taste. Though she was forced to wear it with minimal help from Harriet Broodal, the wedding dress Bowser had obviously painstakingly stolen from the Lake Kingdom for her was _**gorgeous**_. Tiara, though not actually providing the veil, only added to the stunning effect of Peach's natural beauty, and the dress was a rather comfortable fit. And even she couldn't help but comment on how pretty Peach looked.

There was a loud and almost forceful knock at the door of this room that Bowser had given her, and it was obviously his impatient knock, _that_ she knew without him having to say anything.

"Is she ready yet? I wanna see how the dress looks on her!" Despite his impatience, he sounded rather giddy.

"Its bad luck to see the bride in her wedding dress before the wedding Bowser!" Peach called back in a pitiful effort to keep him from seeing her, as even she knew he'd be drooling the second he saw her.

"I don't believe in that stupid superstition! Nice try though, Peachy~!" He shot back and then cooed affectionately. His claw was on the handle and only made about half an inch of a turn before Peach interrupted him again.

"You open that door and see me, then it will guarantee that Mario will stop you and this wedding!"

"I'll take my chances, Peachy!" Bowser retorted. "I'm comin' in!"

Peach pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance as she heard him barge in, not bothering to look at him just yet, though she heard a ruffle of fabric from behind her and could only assume that Harriet had curtsied before Bowser's presence.

Deciding to face the inevitable, Peach finally faced Bowser head on, keeping a neutral face so as not to give him any hopes of her mind changing on the entire situation. The look on his face was priceless, though he wasn't drooling, he looked like he could if he kept his dropped jaw open for too long. She decided to give mercy to the carpet at least by making him say something, playing along for now since there was nothing better to do.

"So, what do you think?" She asked in a neutral tone so he didn't get too excited, giving a slow turn around so he could see it on her from all sides.

"It's….It's… It's _**perfect**_ ….." Bowser stammered in awe, before shaking himself out of his stupor and back to his boastful personality. "And of course it is! Only the best for my future Queen!" Then he became giddy again as he thought of what was next on the to-do list. "Now c'mon, we've got to pose for pictures for all the advertisement, and the sculptor who's going to make the figurines on top of our wedding cake!"

"Fine," Peach replied with a shake of her head in exasperation. "But don't expect me to smile."

"Fair enough. I'll be smiling for the both of us anyway!" Bowser quipped cheerfully.

It was then that they all heard a chugging that could've been a locomotive, but Bowser knew all too well that it had to be Mario.

"Sounds like those two finally caught up." Bowser mused aloud, well aware by now that the hat ghost with Mario was the brother of Tiara. "C'mon Peachy, we might as well let them have a glimpse of your new dress. Oh, and here, to complete the look!" He then gave her a bouquet of small Piranha Plants and pretty white flowers, and he was happy when she took them without question, even if she was keeping a neutral face.

"I had a funny feeling you'd make me hold a Piranha Plant bouquet with some other flowers if it ever came to this." Peach sighed dejectedly. She really did have a feeling about the bouquet, but of all the items he had stolen so far it was the Binding Band he had snatched from the Sand Kingdom that upset her the most. Had the circumstances been different, the Binding Band that was said to bind lovers together for eternity through their matrimony, was extremely romantic in theory. Of course Bowser would nab it for his ulterior motives in forcing it upon her.

"Of course! I would've made it a bouquet of Fire flowers and Ice flowers, but you and I both know what you'd do with them." Bowser countered casually.

Peach couldn't help but snicker darkly at that, she knew he was referring to her most likely giving them to Mario to use against Bowser. Little did Bowser know, Mario wouldn't get the chance if those flowers actually were her bouquet.

Bowser stepped aside from the door to let her out first, and as she passed him with her head held high in obvious defiance, he burned the image into his mind for the sake of the memory as he wanted to remember everything about this wedding….except for how stressful planning it is.

In any case, the sun was setting, leaving the sky in various and gorgeous shades of orange and yellow, clouds were both arching over the ship as well as lying flat enough to stand on below. Perfect spot to have a little battle with Mario and ultimately delay him from catching up again.

Even when Bowser was defeated by Mario, enough to leave him stunned for a number of moments, it pained Peach and Tiara both that they couldn't simply jump off the ship, Mario would've caught them easily, but Bowser was extremely smart in having placed that barrier on the ship, preventing them from leaving until he said otherwise. Which was most likely not going to be until his kingdom or until wherever it was that he planned to have the wedding.

The girls could only look on in horror as Bowser regained his senses and decided to use the ship's cannons to fire upon Mario and Cappy, and the cannonballs trailed right behind them even hitting their ship, and Mario wasn't able to get on it and away in time as they fell to the world below.

It was clear to them then, just how determined Bowser was for this wedding to go off without a hitch. However, Peach _knew_ Mario, and she knew he was one of the luckiest men alive to have survived even worse than what she and Tiara had just witnessed. It was just a matter of time before he could get back on his feet and come for them again.


	3. He Was So Close

Mario mentally sighed to himself of how cliché this all was, he knew he'd have to do it eventually, but he never thought it would happen this soon. After all, at this point he could only hope that this would be the only time he would have to crash Bowser's forced wedding to Peach. He shuddered at the thought of having to do this again in a few years if Bowser was that impatient, and for some reason it made him think of the gray hair he had found on the left side of his head one morning recently. Even if he was only in his mid-twenties, it still shocked Mario to no end that he had already gotten a gray hair, but he was thankful that it was under the rim line of his hat so no one would ever notice it unless he himself _dared_ to point it out.

The door before him was tough just by looking at it, and it had a hat symbol on it so he knew to throw Cappy at it, which he was actually thankful for so he'd have time to put on his 'Grr' face.

Upon barging in, everything was as expected, Peach was happy to see that he made it _just_ in time, and Bowser wasn't happy that he was. A second after, Mario had to keep himself from outright laughing for several reasons. First and foremost was Bowser's persistence in trying to force the Binding Band on Peach as she seemed to be _just_ strong enough to keep him at bay and stall for time, but the back and forth bit of it all was insanely amusing. Secondly, Bowser was _so_ lonely, that he had kidnapped the guests, even Mayor Pauline was here, but it was a bit surprising that none of the Toads from the Mushroom Kingdom were here, but then again they'd probably actually try to stop Bowser this time, though it was still strange not to see any of Bowser's Minions here. Some of the guests complained that they were taken away from their homes for _this_ , while others who managed to get a better grasp of what was going on, encouraged him to rescue Peach and stop this wedding, Mayor Pauline included.

Thirdly, and this should have been mentioned second as it pertains to the first, but oh well, was the Binding Band was _so_ big that it just looked ridiculous that Bowser was even trying to get it on Peach…and wrap it around her waist…? Was that even how the Binding Band worked?

Well, regardless, Bowser stopped trying to get it on her as soon as Mario got close enough. Aaaand, he should have seen that trap door coming, but he honestly didn't think Bowser had planned that far ahead.

However, at least the Koopa King was as easy to defeat as he was on Cloud Kingdom, but Mario couldn't help but cringe as Bowser's suit was torn to shreds, obliterated with his final blow…he didn't know how the shoes got destroyed too, as that was the most impressive thing he'd ever seen the Koopa King wear in all the years they've been fighting each other, but Mario did feel bad about the suit... thank the stars _he_ didn't have to pay for it.

The Binding Band which had mysteriously shrunk around Peach's waist, which Bowser had hastily chained her to from the ceiling, had strangely vanished as well, releasing Peach from its bonds…then he briefly wondered if it had actually worked as it was supposed to…But Mario shook his head at the thought, as he knew Bowser was probably too hasty in getting rid of him to even think of sealing the deal with a kiss with Peach, and that thought was confirmed when he later found that the Binding Band had gone back to where it came from.

* * *

Bowser grumbled as he returned home to his castle, _**alone**_. The only thing that brought him comfort in that was that Peach rejected Mario too. It didn't help that he himself was also rejected at the same time as the plumber, (former plumber, whatever he was these days), even when Bowser's second attempt was purely genuine and not forceful over her. He also begrudgingly knew he wouldn't have fit on Mario's tiny and dinky little airship even if he did manage to make it before the former plumber did.

He groaned even more when he realized he had an unwanted guest waiting for him as he neared his comfy chair in his tv room.

"What are you doing here, King Boo?" Bowser managed to ask, he was too tired to deal with the reprimanding if he left out his unwanted guest's proper title, even if he loathed the fact that King Boo had an aim to rule the world too, he was still a respectable friend.

"I merely wanted to see how your nuptials went, but judging by your demeanor, not very well I take it?" King Boo replied in an almost sarcastically cooing manner, as if the two of them had a bet and Boo knew he had won it. He was reading a brochure on the Sand Kingdom, and set it down to properly address his fellow monarch vying for the throne of the world.

"Obviously. Mario beat me again, but not before I put the ring on her! But then when I checked to see if the ring worked by giving her the Soirée Bouquet again, and she _was_ flattered at first until Mario butted in and then she rejected both of us! I don't know what went wrong!" Bowser complained, all but throwing his tush into his favorite chair and putting his head in his hands.

"Well, how 'bout we go over what you did with the ring then? Maybe it'll help you see what you did wrong?" King Boo suggested, and with Bowser's exasperated sigh of ' _fine_ ', he continued. "So you put the ring on her and?"

"It shrunk around her waist since the sucker was huge to begin with. Then I chained her to it so she wouldn't escape while I dealt with Mario." Bowser filled in the blanks for him.

"…So you didn't kiss her before you went to deal with Mario?" King Boo asked hesitantly.

Bowser _**froze**_ at that. It didn't even cross his mind since Mario took all of his focus away from the wedding… and anything else whenever he showed up in general. Slowly he turned to King Boo wide eyed to show his shock and if he could pale, he was definitely paling right now.

"I'll take your expression as a 'no' then, and that right there is where you went wrong. All weddings end with the bride and groom kissing for a reason, Bowser. The marriage contracts themselves used to be business contracts, complete with the bride having a dowry, something you would inherit simply because you would _be_ her husband, and in this case it would've been her Kingdom." King Boo explained painfully slow to get the point across of how foolish Bowser's brazen antics were to forget something as simple as a kiss. "Plus, the term 'sealing the deal with a kiss' is part of that origin as well." King Boo sighed in exasperation and gently patted the side of Bowser's shell with a hand nub. "You had her in the palm of your claws and you didn't even realize how close you actually were, you big buffoon."

Bowser roared in fury at his own foolishness and then just began to weep because he was so incredibly close to having the woman of his dreams rule by his side. Oh how cruel fate could be. The lack of one simple act was the ultimate reason for his coming home alone.

"Darn it!" Bowser huffed pitifully, lightly slamming down on his chair's armrest, too exhausted from his own anger to put any effort into it.

"Honestly, I can't believe Mario has that much of an effect on you that you forget about a kiss!" King Boo gawked. "I on the other hand, would never leave a lady waiting for that." He all but purred to rub it in.

"Your nastiness!" Called a Koopa Troopa servant who knocked first and quickly let himself in, bowing so deeply on his hands and knees that his head touched the floor. "Princess Peach is in the Kingdom of her own free will, sire! She's with that Tiara ghost girl you had also kidnapped earlier, and the princess is in a cute kimono!"

"Leave her be, she's probably just exploring since I dragged her all over the place and didn't let her out of my sight and hardly got to see anything….But I guess I'll go have a looksee at that kimono, where is she right now?" Bowser ordered, knowing his beloved princess all too well to know what she was up to, and then he relented in wanting to see how cute the kimono was.

"She's by the new Crazy Cap store, my lord!" The servant answered cheerfully.

"Thanks." Bowser grunted graciously, snagging a telescope that was on a table near his Clown Car keys.

King Boo followed him as he was also curious as to the cuteness of the princess' attire. He used magic to summon his own opera style binoculars, and started cackling at being immensely flattered in her choice of a side head mask, a Boo.

Bowser grunted in a slight twinge of jealousy, and tried to ignore it for the sake of his excitement that she was in his kingdom of her own free will. Regardless, she was still adorable in her blue kimono that had Fire Flowers on it, and despite his jealousy about the Boo mask, it really was a nice touch, especially since it fit his kingdom's culture. He couldn't help but smile forlornly at how happy she looked since she was traveling with a friend. He was envious of that Bonneter girl, he wanted to be the one to make Peach smile like that, but for now, seeing it from a distance was good enough for him that it eased his heart…Until Mario showed up and Peach gave him a Power Moon that had fallen from the sky earlier. As angry as he was at the sight of the former plumber, he was still too emotionally exhausted to do anything about it. He didn't even have enough energy to snag that Power Moon from him since Peach had touched it. Instead he sighed sadly and turned around so he wouldn't have to even look at Mario, and made a request to his fellow monarch.

"Tell me when that stupid plumber leaves so I can get a picture of Peachy."

"Certainly." King Boo replied and continued to gaze down at the scene far below through his opera binoculars. "You know, I can perfectly understand why you go through the song and dance routine time and time again for her, she's definitely worth it…but even I know it didn't start out that way for you, now did it?"

"What are you getting at?" Bowser asked suspiciously. He knew of King Boo's growing crush on the princess, and as much as he didn't like it, the ghost king didn't act on it nor act directly against him for her…yet. But he did nearly take out the Mario brothers…twice, and that was something else he wasn't too happy about. If anyone was going to defeat Mario in a way that would make the former plumber retire from rescuing Peach, it was going to be at the Koopa King's claws thank you very much.

"The first time you kidnapped her…since you became King," he had to clarify, knowing that Bowser did also kidnap her when they were tykes and suddenly stopped until he was _much_ older. "…it wasn't out of love back then, only politics…and making sure she didn't undo your little spell of turning her subjects to stone. It amazes me how far you've come since then, even though your rivalry with Mario started there…it makes me wonder when exactly it was that you fell in love with the princess…but I suppose it's been so long that even you don't remember, do you?" King Boo speculated aloud and then asked rhetorically.

A few sounds of retort tried to come out of Bowser's mouth, but unfortunately King Boo was right, he didn't remember _exactly_ when…only _roughly_ when.

"I only remember the rough time frame, not the exact… It could've been anywhere from the very first kart race tournament to the time I lost my castle to the Smithy Gang, I just know that I was admitting it by the time I stole the Star Rod from Star Haven." Bowser finally admitted.

"How sad, you can't even remember the exact moment she won you over with her charm." King Boo mocked coyly.

"And you can?" Bowser countered in agitation.

"When she defeated me on Vibe Island, during the one time you decided to switch things up a little and kidnapped the Mario Brothers and let her be the hero, and to boost her ego I imagine. I was immensely impressed with her strength and determination." The ghostly monarch explained without any hesitation.

"Well, now that you mention it, I do remember how she won me over, but it didn't click until years later. The first time I kidnapped her after I became King and interested in the Mushroom Kingdom to conquer it finally…She had this look of defiance that I couldn't shake out of her even when things seemed hopeless for her. It didn't click until that first adventure I ever had with her, after the Smithy Gang took my castle, that I saw it again and always wanted her to have enough determination to face all of life's challenges." Bowser mused in remembrance.

"Hence letting her be the hero on Vibe Island?" King Boo queried.

"That, and I was getting tired of the minions that guarded her on occasion telling me how hopeless she felt." The Koopa King explained. "Regardless, I'm glad I inspired her again to take things into her own hands, even if it's probably a roundabout way to do it."

King Boo couldn't help but agree, if only for the sake of Princess Peach's happiness as she still had some growing to do since her self-confidence was constantly shot by Bowser's frequent kidnappings.

As soon as Mario left the kingdom, King Boo alerted Bowser and in turn the Koopa King got a really good picture of her in a kimono. It would be added to his collection of cute outfits he's seen her in, and it would hold him over until he could think up a new plan to defeat Mario once and for all in a fair fight, and wow Peach into genuinely marrying him. It still killed him inside at how close he was to having her be his forever.

However, there was always next time. _All in due time_.


End file.
